Halo: A Long time Coming
by Soul's Release
Summary: Have you ever wondered what it would be like to live in the Halo universe? I do; well I did a long time ago. 538 years ago to be exact. But then something happened to me that changed my entire world... I'M BACK AND READY TO GO. Thank you for your support, my wonderful supporters.
1. Ain't That A Kick To The Head

Disclaimer: I do not own Halo or any of its characters and/or concepts. All copyrights go to Bungie Studios and 343 Industries.

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to live in the Halo universe? I do; well I did a _long _time ago. 538 years ago to be exact. But then something happened to me that changed my entire world...

**CHAPTER 1**

**December 1,2014**

"Dude, quit hogging the Xbox, Seth. I want to play Halo. You've been playing for 3 hours!"

I looked at my younger brother with the sternest face I could conjure up but he looked back at me with his trademark style Troll-face. I couldn't help but laugh at his stupid face. "Dude, I'm serious don't make me flip the circuit breaker again."

My brother sighed at me hoping I would shut up and let him play, but unfortunately for him I wasn't backing down this time. He had chores to do and I wanted to majorly kick some Covenant ass.

"But, I'm just about to finish this match of Team Deathmatch," he whined back at me.

"I don't care if you're in the middle of having a tea party. Mom said she has some chores for you. Now go, I'll finish your game and save your stats for you."

"Fine, you better not lose the match," he said finally getting off the game.

I grinned. "Oh I don't plan on it; besides when have I ever done that to you?"

"Let's see, oh, how about an hour ago when I was doing laundry."

"Whatever, go before mom gets pissed."

I sat down on my bed as I picked up my Halo 4 limited edition Xbox control and finished his lame game of COD. I heard the loud barking of my dogs. They were fighting again, but it sounded a lot rougher that normal. I tried to ignore them as I booted up Halo 3 and began a game of Swat, however it sounded like a war was going on downstairs. I paused my game and went downstairs to see if I could calm them down. I reached the bottom of the stairs and saw a pretty normal sight. Once again my dog Bastion was rough-housing with his daughter Mara-Jade. As usual, they were running around the living room and barking really loud. As Bastion came towards the foot of the stairs, I stepped out in front of him and attempted to stop him.

"HEY, Bastion, calm the fuck down, NOW!" I yelled at him hoping that the tone of my voice would scare him enough to make him stop; unfortunately for me he just ignored me and continued to chase Mara. I watched as they both circled the recliner one more time and stepped directly in front of Bastion.

"I SAID CALM DOWN-"

I never got to finish my sentence. I didn't know at the time, but Bastion was going too fast and couldn't stop. Instead I ended up being used as an airbag as he charged directly into my legs, knocking me over. Unfortunately I was standing in the one spot that if I fell back, I would end up landing in the middle of the hard-wood floor next to the front door. I fell back for what seemed like forever. When I finally hit the floor I heard a loud crack and everything went black.

**So there's Chapter 1, guys! I hope that you like it. I should be starting on chapter 2 shortly, so leave your comments and let me know what you think I should do to fix anything or just some general ideas.**

**Thanks!**

**SR**


	2. Wake Me, When You Need Me

Over the next few days I was unconscious quite a bit; but from what I remember I was taken to the hospital almost immediately after I fell. The doctors told my family that I had sustained a huge break in the bones of my skull and that there was a very high chance I could die. My dad was able to get the doctors to do an experimental surgery that would save me, but it would be a long time before I could leave the hospital again.

"I don't care, I just want my son to survive, even if I end up paying for it forever," he told the doctors. My dad was stubborn that way.

"We'll do what we can. In the meantime, why don't you folks find a place to spend the night," replied the surgeon.

I vaguely remember going to the operating room. There were a lot of bright lights and a bunch of machines I couldn't really make out, my head was screaming in pain and that wasn't helping my vision. It felt like my head had been hit with a trash compactor, I couldn't focus on anything for a long period of time, my vision was shit, and I had a headache that was worse than anything I had ever felt. I was about to pass out when the surgeon appeared over me.

"Schyler, can you hear me?" he asked with concern.

I was in so much pain I couldn't speak, only raise my thumb in an attempt to tell him I could hear him. He nodded so I assumed he knew.

"Schyler, we are going to do what we can to help, but it won't be the most conventional way due to the severity of your injuries. What we're going to do is put you under and take off the top three inches of your skull and then staple a replacement over it. However in order for you to heal we'll need to cryogenically freeze you to make sure nothing goes wrong with the surgery. I'm sorry but it looks like your going to be missing Christmas."

I could tell he was trying to make me feel better by making a joke about missing Christmas. Once again I slowly raised my thumb to tell him to go ahead a do it. Almost immediately I felt a needle enter my arm and an extremely cold liquid flow through it. I started to count backwards from ten in my head and relax. However, I was only able to get to four.

* * *

**December 15, 2014**

**University Of Iowa Hospital...**

"Hey, Schy, it's me, Seth."

My brother approached a large white box with a small bag in his hand. It had been two weeks since my surgery, and one week since I had been put into a Cryogenic Preservation Bed, or CPB. My brother had visited me almost five time since. Each time he had brought something to do with me, or at least with my 'bed.' Today was no different.

"I brought you someone. A certain fuzzy friend of yours," he said as he pulled something small out of the bag. He placed the object on the top and sat down. "Wolfie missed you. So I thought I would bring him up for you in case you woke up."

He sat in the chair silently for the longest time. He looked around the room hoping I could hear him.

"I also got you an early birthday present at home. A brand new Xbox One," he said softly.

He looked at his pocket and pulled out his phone.

*Sigh*

"I got to go, bro, mom's waiting outside. I'll see you tomorrow."

Seth stood up and gave my bed a kiss, which never happened unless he was really upset. He stood up and pet the stuffed dog and left the room, leaving the only brother he had with his toy.

* * *

**January 13, 2017**

**U.I.H.**

A tall slender man with slightly gray hair stepped into a chrome colored room and began to examine many different machines that surrounded a large silver box.

"How are we doing today, kiddo?"

Dr. Forpast recorded many different things onto his clipboard as he examined the box in the room with him.

"Happy 22nd birthday bud. Seems like your body just isn't like the other cryo patients, huh?" He looked into the small window on the top of the box and looked at the young face within.

"You missed something big last week. Apparently Russia declared war upon the US again. Kind of concerning, huh?"

Dr. Forpast looked out the window of the hospital room at the many vehicles driving around on the roads below.

As the young doctor continued to stare outside he look up as he saw a large black object falling from the sky.

"I wonder what that is..." He said to himself.

Within moments the entire outside burst into flames as a large carpet bomb shattered near the hospital. Soon the entire hospital was in chaos as doctors raced to save patients. My box was left alone however. I was left under the rubble of my room and forgotten for a long time. Luckily when the bomb hit the only thing damaged was the room itself. Everything else just fell into the road and was buried with the power outlets still intact.

I was down there for a long time I guess, because when the power failed and I woke up, _everything_ was different.

* * *

**Hey sorry about the length of this chapter. I just wanted to get through the PRE-HALO stuff. Next chapter should sound more like Halo.**

**Anyways, be sure to leave your comments and suggestions.**

**THANKS!**

**SR**


	3. Revielle

**May 17, 2545**

**Earth, Underneath Streets Of Iowa City, Iowa**

_Beep! Beep! Beep! Cryogenic sequence failure! Repeat: Cryogenic sequence failure! Beep! Beep! Beep!_

Underneath the streets of Iowa City a small black beat-up old box began to flash red with warning lights as a series of alarms began to sound. Smoke began to emanate from the sides as the top of the box began to raise itself upwards. After it reached an incline of 45 degrees, it stopped moving and the alarms subsided. The smoke continued to flow in large amounts as a hand emerged.

* * *

-_Repeat: Cryogenic sequence failure!_

"Ohh, Mom, turn of the alarm. Give me five minutes!

_Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!_

I opened my eyes as I heard a faint hissing noise. Everything was blurry and it took me a minute to be able to focus on anything but my vision finally cleared up and I saw a low, brown, moldy ceiling above whatever I was laying in. Wherever I was it wasn't the Hospital, that much was certain. I raised my hand and gripped the sides of the cold padded box. As I pulled myself up into a sitting position I noticed a small gray toy in the corner of the box.

"Wolfie? What the hell? Where am I, and how did you get here?'

I picked up my stuffed friend and pulled myself onto the edge of the box. I was really weak I soon learned as I became nauseous just as soon as I attempted to stand up.

_Okay, slow down. I've got to take it slow. Maybe I can salvage some of the lights from this box and find out where I am._

I turned around and examined the contents of my bed. there were a few lights exposed and a bunch of wiring that I could fashion into a make-shift flashlight. So I decided to set Wolfie back in his corner and got to work on taking things apart and putting them back together. As I worked I began to hum the theme song to Halo, in order to keep from getting bored. It was tedious work, but I needed to find my way out of here.

Finally, I finished working and held up my light to test it. At first it wouldn't even power up, but after hitting it on the box a couple of times, it turned on. Satisfied with my work, I picked up my buddy and made my way out of there. As I walked down the old creepy halls I saw old pieces of art, stacks of paper, some weird looking medical tools. I continued making my way through the hospital and noticed a small closet with what looked like clothes inside. I put my flashlight on the ground and tried to open the door.

As I thought, the door was locked. But the lock looked as though it could fall out of the door at anytime. I braced myself as I prepared to break down the door and backed up. I began charging at the door, and eventually after about three or four times the lock shattered.

_Wow, that things was pretty old, if it just disintegrated, basically,_ I thought to myself. I grabbed my light and Wolfie, who had fallen off of my shoulder and went inside to get some clothes. As I browsed the dusty contents of the closet I thought about how long this room had to have been locked in order for the lock to become that old. My guess was at least 30 years, which if that were the case I would be 48 years old, depending on how long it had been since the door had last been worked on. Once I got dressed in some scrubs that were more or less my size, I stepped back out into the hall and looked around. On the left side was a cave in, which was where my box was. Directly ahead was pure black, probably just a huge network of hallways and stuff. But, to my right I saw a faint light which I hoped was a way out of this hell-hole. I decided to go right hoping I would find some food and a way out. For about a good ten minutes I walked down the broken, empty halls of the hospital I used to go to for all of my medical needs. I could tell that something bad had happened, because there were large black marks over large areas of the walls and floor. It made me want to cry, most of the area I was in had once been a children's hospital. I shuddered at the thought of all the young children who may have died here when everything went to hell.

Eventually I reached the source of the light I had seen earlier, and looked up. I could see an empty elevator shaft with a ladder on the far side of the long sleek tube. If I was going to get out through this way, it was going to be one helluva jump. I put Wolfie in the breast pocket of my scrubs and backed up in order to get a running start. Once I reached a distance of about ten feet I broke into a sprint and jumped at the edge of the doorway. As my heart raced, I reached out and grabbed the ladder, hitting the wall hard. I involuntarily groaned, as I felt the air leave my chest in protest to the impact. I caught my breath and climbed the ladder until I reached thee hatch at the roof of the hospital and pushed it open.

Light flooded the dark lifeless building as I climbed out into the sun. As I closed the hatch to the roof, I noticed I was in the middle of what looked like a road. Dazed and confused, I just stood there in amazement as I saw so many lights and people walking around. I was busy taking in what I was seeing when I heard a voice yelling at me from behind. I turned around to see what I could only describe as a police officer in black and silver armor with an orange-tinted welding mask on his head.

"Hey, kid! Did you hear me?" the police officer asked me.

I looked at him confused. "No, I'm sorry. What did you say sir?"

"I said, 'get out of the road!.' You're holding up traffic!"

I turned around and indeed there was a huge line of vehicles behind me, waiting for me to move. I raised my hands up in an apologetic way and jogged over to the cop. As I got closer, he raised the shield of his helmet, revealing a man no older than 30 with a slim moustache and green eyes.

"Hey, are you okay, you seem kind of out of it?" he asked me with a face that showed great concern.

I looked around trying to fully understand where I was, and _where_ I was. From what I could tell I was still in Iowa City, because I saw an extremely tall building with what resembled the hospitals old logo on the front. As I began to understand where I was I saw it. Across the street I saw a small metal stand with a bunch of small screens on it with an electronic picture with a word on it that about made me shit my pants. On the screen it said: "UNSC: Join today, Defy the Covenant!"

* * *

I felt a hand grab my shoulder and shake me back into reality. I turned to see the police officer shining a light into my eyes.

"Are you feeling alright, son?" he asked me.

I waved the light out of my eyes and looked at him with fear. "I'm not on any drugs officer. I need you to tell me what the date is please," I asked him with the most serious face I could.

He looked at me confused, but told me anyway. "It's, uh, May 17, 2545, why?"

My eyes went wide as he told me what year it was. According to him it was only twenty years into the war. Reach hadn't been found yet, but if I was right the SPARTAN-II project was still underway.

"Officer, where is the nearest UNSC outpost. I need to get there as soon as I can," I told him while remaining as calm as I could.

"That would be in Chicago, but if you really do need to get there, I really think you should come back with me to the station. Besides your, uh, hospital scrubs are not really what you want to be wearing out in public," he told me as he looked me over with a small grin.

I looked down at my current attire and realized he was right. These five hundred year old scrubs weren't what someone would wear outside. I agreed to go with him and he walked me over to his police cruiser and opened the door. I thanked him as we entered the vehicle and buckle myself in. As I straightened my clothes I felt a horrible pain in my stomach and bent over in pain as I realized that I hadn't eaten since I had woke up.

The police officer looked over at me and realized what was wrong. "You hungry, kid?"

I looked up at him and nodded as I held my stomach. "Yeah, it's been a while since I ate," I said, chuckling. In truth it had been five centuries since I had eaten anything at all.

"Well, I guess, we could stop and grab a burger on the way," he said as he started the car. "Tell you what, why don't you tell me where you got that outfit of yours on the way, that way if anyone asks you have something to tell people?"

"I guess, besides it might help me if you could tell me about stuff I missed."

"Missed?" he asked, looking at me funny.

"It's a long story..."

* * *

**Hey, everybody! Here's chapter three, probably the longest yet. But now I'm up and around and I know it isn't really at an important year in the Halo story, but it's all part of the plan... (devilish grin emoticon)** **Anyway, as always, please remember to leave comments. Oh and I will be taking a small break in order to work on some other personal things but I won't be gone long.** **THANKS!** **SR**


	4. Eventually, Everything Goes Downhill

**May 17,2545**

"Wait a minute. So let me get this straight. You were born in the year 1996, and you're only eighteen years old?"

I looked at the police officer who had volunteered to take me to the nearby police station, and was generous enough to grab me a burger, or two. Luckily, even though I was 500 years into the future, there was still some familiar fast food restaurants, like McDonald's. He looked at me with a face of utter disbelief. In the last twenty minutes I had taken the time to explain when and where I was from. I also told him what had happened to me. He continued to stare at me intermittently as he drove through Iowa City. I simply returned the expression by giving him a cheeky grin.

"Umm, yeah?" I replied.

"But you do realize it's been over 500 years since you went in that recover thing you described?"

"Yeah. Well, unless I'm dreaming. But I'm pretty sure that if this were a dream, this cheeseburger wouldn't taste as good as it does," I said with a smile while waving the sandwich I was eating.

"Ha, yeah, you're probably right, but wait. That would make you at least 530 years old, you know that right?"

All I could do was stare blankly out the windshield of the car. He was right, I was over 500 years old. My friends and family were gone. I mean, sure I had Wolfie, but he was a stuffed animal for crying out loud. I was never going to celebrate another birthday by playing video games with my brother all day. And I was never going to be able to spend a Sunday morning with my mom drinking coffee and eating donuts, either. For all intents and purposes, I was all alone.

The police officer looked over at me, obviously he could tell that what he had said was bothering me.

"Are you okay, bud?"

I continued to stare out the window as I thought, but after realizing that I would only get depressed by thinking about it, I replied. "Yeah, I'm fine. By the way I never got your name, officer."

"Oh, sorry. I'm Officer Jason Bell, Iowa City Police Force. At your service..." he trailed, probably since I hadn't introduced myself either.

"Just call me Aren," I put simply.

Officer Bell looked at me funny, like he thought I was joking. I simply stared back as he looked at me.

"Seriously? I wouldn't have named you that, no offense. You look more like a Bill to me."

I shrugged at his comment and chuckled. "Yeah, I guess, but that's not really my true name. My real name is Schyler, but that reminds me of my family and it's kind of depressing."

As we were getting into our conversation, the radio in the car went off.

_"All units, be advised we have a 10-15 in progress at West Benton and South Capital, assailant has blunt weaponry, Over."_

"This is Officer Bell, I copy, en route to location, Over and Out."

With that, Officer Bell turned on the siren and we tore off into the city.

* * *

**20 Minutes Later**

As we arrived where the incident was, I could already see a man with a baseball bat standing in the middle of a parking lot yelling at anyone who walked past him. Officer Bell put his hand on my shoulder and looked at me an extremely stern face.

"Stay here, this could get bad. This guy looks a few fries short of a steak dinner, if you get my drift."

I nodded as he picked up his baton and got out of the car. But I wanted to hear what he was saying. So I rolled down the window of the car and leaned over so I could just barely hear him.

As Jason approached the ,clearly, raving lunatic, the man began to act more crazy.

"Stay back, dammit I will use this," he yelled at Bell. "You don't know what I know, so back off!"

"Hey, it's cool, man. Just put down the bat and you can tell me what you know." Apparently Bell knew what to do but I was still on edge about this guy.

"No, I am not putting shit down. You don't know what's gonna happen if you don't listen. The end is coming! Yeah. It's coming and the frozen kid's gonna bring it all tumbling down."

I continued to listen up until the point where he said 'frozen kid.' At that point I started looking for a gun, something told me this was going to get ugly, quick. As I searched the car, I heard the nut-job getting more violent. As I looked over the center console, I spotted a magnum under the armrest. I grabbed it just in time to see the man approaching Officer Bell. At this point I wasn't taking any chances. I burst out of the car and pulled back the slide on the gun and hid behind the car door.

"Back away, sir, I will used force if necessary," yelled Bell as the man got closer to him with his bat raised above her head.

"NO! You're just gonna shoot me, and THAT AIN'T HAPPENING!"

After that things went nuts and the guy sprinted to Officer Bell and began clubbing him with his bat. I knew that I was the only thing that was able to help, so I stood up and pointed the magnum at him.

"Hey! Over here, Bitch!" I yelled at the man and to my surprise he turned and stared at me.

"You're next, BOY!"

As he finished his threat I pulled the trigger and shot him in the leg. As the bullet entered his leg he dropped the bat and fell to the ground. I ran over to Officer Bell and helped him up. Thankfully, he only had a few welts on his arm. He walked over to the man and put him in cuffs as he spoke into his radio.

"This is Officer Bell, subject in custody. Be advised, shots fired, ambulance needed at my location."

_"Copy that, ambulance en route."_

Then Officer Bell walked over to me and took the gun.

"What the hell were thinking?"

I looked at him in shock. "You needed help. I was the only one who could, so I did."

He shook his head. "You could've shot me, you know," he paused and shook his head. "All that for a civil disturbance. Well, anyways, that was a nice shot."

"Thanks, hey can we go to the station yet?"

He just laughed at that. "Sure, just hang on we need to wait for the ambulance."

I sighed and took a seat on the hood of the car. "Fine..."

* * *

**Hey guys! Sorry it took me a bit longer to get this chapter up, but I have had a bit going on.**

**I have some news! From now on I am going to be doing something that another author is doing that I thought was cool. Okay, if you leave a review _and_ follow my story I will try and make an OC based upon you. BUT you need to leave a review in order for me to do so.**

**So as usual, feel free to leave a comment/review and tell me what you think.**

**As always, SR**


	5. Luck

**May 17, 2545 (1530 Hours)**

* * *

Officer Bell and I arrived at the police station roughly 2 1/2 hours after the incident with the crazy guy and it was a pretty quiet drive. When we got there Bell walked me to the rec room where he found me some clothes to replace my old hospital scrubs, then we went to the locker room and he let me get cleaned up. Apparently, when you're a TV dinner for 500 years your body still finds a way to start smelling and your facial hair still grows.

After I was clean, shaved, and clothed, we went to the operations area and I was told to wait while Officer Bell reported on what had happened earlier. While I waited I found a news article on a table, unfortunately I had no idea what it was about, apparently something there was some sort of big debate going on over some aspect of the war. I kept on reading for a short twenty minutes, in an attempt to keep from being bored, until an officer approached me from across the room.

"Hey, kid, are you waiting for someone?"

I set down the paper and looked up at the man hoping he wasn't going to yell.

"Um, yeah. I'm actually here with Officer Bell, why?"

"Oh, no reason, you've just been sitting there for a while and was wondering if you wanted to do something while you waited."

I set the article back on the nearby side table and jumped up from my chair. "Sure, why not. What do you have to do around here?"

The officer walked out from behind his desk and grabbed a pistol from one of the weapons lockers. "Well, I heard how you put a bullet through the knee of that nutjob earlier while you were with Bell, and I figured you might want to shoot a few targets downstairs at the range. Nothing dangerous, I'll load the gun with non-lethal rounds," he said as hey handed the empty weapon to me.

I looked at the gun, cautiously, I was still trying to get over the fact that I had shot a guy earlier. But, if I was going to make any difference in the war, I was going to need to know how to safely handle a firearm.

"Won't you get into trouble for doing this?" I asked the police officer as I accepted the pistol.

He shook his head. "Nah, if anyone asks, I'll tell them you are signed up for the instruction courses."

"Okay, then let's go."

* * *

Down at the range the officer signed the log and grabbed 2 pairs of noise cancelling headphones and 2 sets of safety goggles. We walked into the next room and he explained everything to about 20 minutes of talking he asked me if I had any questions, to which I said no. So he loaded the gun with a magazine of 12.7 x 40mm non-lethal rounds. He racked the slide to make sure it wouldn't jam and handed it over to me.

"Here you go, just give me a minute to set up the range," he said as he walked over to a small computer and began typing in a training session code. "Once the targets start moving, feel free to start shooting after you turn the headphones on."

"Right." I turned them on and began aiming down the sights. As I got into a comfortable stance I didn't notice the range spit out the first two targets. The police officer must've walked up next to me while I was busy because I almost jumped when he tapped me on the shoulder and pointed down-range. I looked and saw a metal cutout of a man with a Kalashnikov and took aim at where his heart would be and slowly squeezed the trigger.

_BANG!_

As the gun fired, it jerked itself out of my hand and flew behind me, but not before hitting the ceiling and pulling my arm up. As my arm flew up I felt a pop in my elbow and could tell I pulled ssomething important. I gripped my arm and scowled at the pistol which was now in the hands of the police officer who was approaching me.

"Are you alright? That looked like it hurt."

I rubbed my elbow and looked at the targets which had both stopped moving. "Yeah, that sure as hell hurt, though. But it looks like I hit both of the targets," I said as I pointed.

The officer holstered the pistol and typed into the computer for a second. Then the targets slid apart so they stood side by side. Sure enough the bullet had passed through both targets clean. In the middle of each was a 3" hole in the same exact spot on each.

"Damn, kid. You ever shot one of these before?"

"Umm, no, no I haven't, why?"

He looked at me with a face of utter shock. "Because, I've been teaching kids and adults for the last seven years how to fire a gun and I have _never_ seen anyone else do anything remotely resembling what you just did. Now with you're lying and have handled a gun before, or you are extremely lucky."

Just then I remembered something from the opening cutscene from Halo 3.

'_You had something they didn't. Something no one saw but me. Can you guess? Luck.'_

I looked at the man and smiled. "It's probably just beginner's luck."

"Fair enough; well we had better get back upstairs, besides Ibet Bell is done talking to the Chief by now.

* * *

Once we reentered the operation room I noticed Bell was waiting. "Did you take him down to the range like I think you did, Wallace?"

The officer who was with me smirked at officer Bell, "Why, afraid he beat you personal best?"

"No, I just don't want him hurt. Apparently he is the subject of a 500 year old missing persons case. And I just learned where his relatives are, smartass. Not everything is a competitive sport."

I stared at Bell. I had relatives who were alive? "Where is my family?" I had to find them. My personal mission to save the world could wait.

"Relax, Aren. They live here in Iowa City. In fact I was just getting ready to take you there."

"Then let's go."

* * *

**AU**

**HEY GUYS!**

**SR here and I wanted to say thanks to the following people for your support and input on the fanfic:**

**dadman9994**

**JM38LACK**

**nobodyreallyimportant**

**Dr4g0nb411z**

**MrSpartan3398**

**Again thank you guys for you hopefully continued support.**

**Also remember that if you want an OC based upon you please leave a review and follow the story. Only people who do both will get one. Once I see that this has happened I will PM you and then ask for information about your OC that you want me to incorporate.**

**As always, **

**-Soul's Release**


	6. Premonitions and Advice

**May 19, 2545 (0630 Hours) Chicago, Illinois**

* * *

'_You will become the best we can make you. You will be the protectors of Earth and all her colonies.'_

I saw burning cities and raging fires, hundreds of Covenant forces were charging up a barren hilltop towards a single green figure. He didn't run, or even flinch, instead the figure dropped a magazine and slapped a new one into the rifle he was holding and prepared for the worst. As the first squad of Elite Zealots approached him a barrage of missiles rained from above and blew the massive horde of aliens to pieces. Those who remained were unable to focus on their target and fled as they were gunned down by assault rifle fire. As the green figure finished another armored figure, this one white, approached and slapped the other on the back.

"Great work today, John. Come on, let's head home, Dr. Halsey wants to see you. She says she has something to give you."

The armored figure, now known as John nodded and slung his rifle across his back. "Then it's time."

Both figures watched as an aircraft landed nearby and nodded to each other and climbed aboard.

* * *

"Hey wake up, we're at the UNSC recruitment center you wanted to go to, Aren," Jason Bell said as he shook me awake.

I had been dreaming of the Master Chief, from what I saw it was during the final days of Reach. I stretched as I sat up in the passenger seat of the police cruiser. Over the past 48 hours I had gone through a lot, I had learned that I was a natural at firing a pistol, and was extremely lucky. And as a bonus I now knew that my family lived on. Apparently my descendant was named after me, too. It was somewhat of an honor to be named after me. I guess my brother was a sentimental guy after all. My family had become wealthy, and they were living in luxury. A thing I always wanted but never had. I didn't tell them who I was because I knew if I did, they would never let me join the war. I couldn't afford to stay with them. I had to go, I had a mission and I was the only one who could do it.

No pressure though.

I looked at Jason one last time before I opened the door. "Hey, Jason, I just wanted to thank you for all that you've done for me."

He cocked his head to the side, as if wondering why I was speaking the way I was. "Sure, no problem, bud. Are you sure you'll be okay?" he asked with a slight frown.

I smiled. "Yeah, don't worry about me, you take care of yourself. And take my advice, that vacation to Africa you're planning for 2552? Don't take it, in fact go to Hawaii instead."

He looked at me confused. "Huh? Why's that?"

"Just take my word for it. I'll see you around." With that I opened the door and climbed out of the car.

* * *

Jason just looked at me as I approached the building and pondered what I said. _Hawaii, huh? I guess that's as good a place as any." _Jason started the car, waved to me and drove off.

* * *

I gazed upon the recruitment center for a moment. If I was going to save the human race and stop the war, I sure as hell was going to need some training.

"Well, let's just hope those medical restrictions have changed since the last time I was thinking about this," I said to myself.

With that I jogged up to the glass doors of the building and pushed it open. Almost instantly I could smell poorly made coffee and paper, lots of paper. I walked inside and looked at the directory. The recruitment office was on the third floor. _Great,_ _I hate stairs. _I walked further into the building and climbed the short flight of stairs to the third floor pausing every so often to admire the different areas of the building. I entered the office I was looking for and instantly noticed a pair of police officers with MA5B Assault Rifles in their grasps. I entered the room being careful not to make a fool of myself. I approached the desk and rang a small bell and waited for assistance.

A tall, muscular trooper appeared from a side room from the left and took a seat behind the desk. After he straightened his uniform, he smiled and set his hands on a stack of papers.

"Can I help you, son?" The man asked softly.

I hesitated but smiled back. "Yes sir, I wanted to join the marines. I believe I would be an exceptional soldier, with-" I was cut off by the laughter of the two police officers behind me.

"You want to join the marines? A shrimp like you?! That's fucking hilarious! Hey, Bert can you believe this kid?" On of them said to the other.

The other cop was on the floor, laughing. "No, man, this is rich!"

The trooper stood up and his face turned almost beet red. "Excuse me, but did I give you two jokesters permission to speak?! If I wanted comedy hour, I believe I would have asked. Now stand up and shut the hell up!"

Both of the cops stopped instantly and regained their composure. The stood straight up and were silent. As I began to get a bit worried I wasn't going to be able to join the trooper straightened out his uniform again and looked me over.

"Sorry about that, son. Now you said you wanted to join the marine corps, correct?" He asked in a softer tone than a moment ago.

"Yes, sir," I replied quickly.

The trooper opened a door and allowed me to come behind the counter. As I entered the room he retrieved a small device with a wrist strap and a small headset; he attached the small device to my wrist and placed the headset upon my head.

"Then you will need these. Please follow me to the physical testing area."

I did as I was told and followed him through a series of hallways to a colossal outdoor space full of what looked like an obstacle course. He stopped at a small computer and typed in his ID and password. As he prepared the course he began to explain the exercise.

"Alright, in order for you to be considered for the corps, you'll need to navigate your way through this obstacle course, retrieve the flag at the other end and bring it back here. Once you've finished, if you perform adequately enough you will be allowed to join. The small device on your wrist is a heart rate monitor, it will allow me to monitor your vitals as you progress. If you get lost and need a hint, use the headset provided and I will attempt to assist you. Within the course is also a small paintball gun with a drum of paintballs. It will be used for a seek and destroy scenario which will be marked. You will not be provided padding, for it is designed to assess how much punishment you're able to withstand. Do you have any questions, boot?"

I stared at him for a moment and grabbed the headset and stepped on it. Then I grinned at him and simply replied with five words.

"I won't need this, sir."

He grinned back at me. "Then begin."

As soon as I saw him start the timer, I was gone into the maze.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

Sorry that it took so long for me to get this chapter up, I have had a lot of things going on. Hopefully I will be able to get chapter 7 up quickly. To those who have OC's based upon them I haven't forgotten about you, I just have been trying to get further into the story so that when I do incorporate them it won't be weird.

Thanks again to everyone who has been supporting me through their reviews and remember to leave a review and follow the story for an OC of your own.

**Thanks,**

**Soul's Release!**


	7. Arrival

**May 21st, 2545 (1330 Hours) Chicago, Illinois UNSC Recruitment Center**

I watched as a recruitment officer viewed the recording of my run through the obstacle course from two days before. Through the entirety of the recording he said nothing, he just sat there quietly as we both watched me run, jump, climb and crawl my way through it. Eventually it came t the point where I reached the stealth portion of the course and we then saw as I easily snuck my way around all fifteen of the officers within and shot them all with paintballs. Looking at the tape really put into perspective how massive the course was. I knew it was big because it took me just over an hour to complete it. But as I looked at it through the tape, I guessed that in reality it was about two miles long.

Eventually the tape came to an end and the officer turned in his chair to face me. A look of bewilderment sat upon his face.

"I just don't understand how a kid like you was able to complete the course so quickly," he said as he tapped his fingers on his desk. "The best time we've had was two hours and thirty minutes. You, however, did it in an hour and twenty five."

I just sat there as he finished, I didn't really understand it either. I had no knowledge of any courses like this from any of the Halo games I had played in the past, yet I was able to complete the course like I trained for it my entire life. "I guess, I'm just quick on my feet, sir."

He smiled slightly as he stood up and pulled a folder out of his desk. "I guess, so. Anyways, before I can clear you as fit for service, you're going to have to be screened for any medical problems. As long as you come up clean, you can be shipped out within the week. That okay with you, son?"

I immediately froze. I had totally forgot about all of my medical 'issues' that I had. For one, I knew I had cirrhosis of the liver, and asthma; both of those could be a problem. But I decided I would deal with it when the time came. Instead I smiled back and nodded. "Sounds good to me," I said with a hint of nervousness in my voice.

"Alright then, if you'll follow me, I will take you to the medical center downstairs." With that the officer stood up from behind his desk and approached the door. As it slid open I, too, got up from my chair and started to follow. As we began walking towards the elevators I started to worry. I knew that if the screening caught my many health problems, then my chances of joining the UNSC were going to basically go down the toilet. Nevertheless, I followed him inside the elevator. As we entered, I saw him push the button for the second floor. The rest of the walk to the medical center was quiet, and we only stopped when another officer approached us and started to talk to the officer escorting me. The two of them talked for a few minutes about random stuff that I honestly didn't really listen to, and once they were done we continued on our way down the hallway. We approached another door and again it opened as we got closer, revealing a small room with a man in a black lab coat working with a few medical instruments. Once we were inside the room, the man who had escorted me stepped towards the desk and placed the folder he had been carrying down. The doctor looked up at the folder and then at me. He smiled and opened the folder as he began to speak.

"Another new recruit today, Officer Kyle?" He said looking at the papers full of information about me.

The officer just nodded his head as he began to turn around and head towards the door. "Yeah, he needs a full set of bloodwork and medical screenings done, afterwards, if he comes up clean go ahead and clear him for duty. Make sure he knows where to go, and if he needs anything make sure he gets it, alright?"

The doctor looked at me and gave me a quizzical look. "Ok, I'll make sure it's done."

I took a seat in a chair and pulled up the sleeve of the jacket I was wearing as the doctor walked over to a cabinet and pulled out what looked like an blood-draw kit. As he opened the sterile packaging, he turned around and looked at me. "I'm guessing that you've had your blood drawn before?"

I nodded. "Yeah, you could say that."

* * *

**May 21st, 2545 (1400 Hours) Chicago, Illinois UNSC Recruitment Center **

_"You will be the protectors of Earth and all her colonies." _

* * *

It had been an hour and a half since I had had my blood drawn and I was getting nervous. I really hoped that the results would come out okay. I really didn't have a plan B if this didn't work, so I guess the fate of humanity rested on the results of a set of blood work. As I got ready to ask a receptionist what was taking so long, the doctor came into the waiting room I was in and asked me to come back to his office. I quickly turned around and followed him back and sat down in a metal chair in front of a computer with what looked like data on the screen. As the doctor sat down across from me he straightened out his lab coat and put on a pair of reading glasses.

"Alright, Mr. Coder. Your test results have come back and apart from an incredibly strong immune system, the results are perfect. I am happy to say that you are able to join the UNSC. Now I just need your signature on this form here and I will give you a packet of papers for you to take to the spaceport and you'll be able to be shipped out tomorrow."

I was absolutely shocked. The screening had either completely missed my illnesses or the parameters of joining the military had changed since 2015. I decided to find out what exactly the results showed and asked. "Wait, what do you mean, 'the results are perfect?' "

The doctor turned the screen so that I could see the information for myself. Sure enough the only thing that it said was abnormal was a strong immune system. I immediately was confused, and I the doctor could obviously tell.

"Is there something wrong?"He asked with concern in his voice.

I shook my head. "I don't know, um, are there any medical illnesses that would make it so that an individual wouldn't be able to join the UNSC?"

He hesitated to answer, he was probably wondering why I was asking such a strange question. "Yeah, lots of things, any chronic conditions, like asthma and cancer. Why?"

I just shook my head again. I was definitely confused now. Apparently, all of my medical conditions were just gone. "Nothing. Never mind, forget I asked. So you said to sign here?"

The doctor nodded as I began to sign my name.

"Aren Coder, huh? Interesting name," he muttered as I finished.

"Yeah, I know it's weird. But it's all I've got."

* * *

**June 13, 2545 (1245) ****Military Reservation 01478-B****, Highland Mountains, ****Eposz, Planet Reach**

_This place will become your home. Your fellow trainees will be your family now. The training will be difficult. There will be a great deal of hardship on the road ahead, but I know you will all make it._

* * *

It had been three days since I had arrived on Reach and already I had been surprised by the severity of the training of the Marines. In my first day alone my fellow recruits and I went through something the COs called 'The Pillars of Loki.' It was HORRIBLE! There were hundreds of wooden poles about 10 meters high at random distances apart. We had to traverse the field of poles and the best part was: a lot of the poles had booby traps on them. Needless to say, I had a few cuts and bruises. It took me the better part of an hour to finally finish. After which, we had to run 5 miles in the rain.

Yeah... it was fun. (Not really, it was absolutely awful.)

My squad was given the day to relax since 15 out of 30 of us were in the infirmary. I decided to use my time to try and find one of my commanding officers and try and talk to him. I just hoped that it would go well. I climbed out of my bunk and pulled on a pair of combat boots and a green t-shirt. As I got dressed, one of the others looked up from a book he was reading.

"Hey, Coder! What are you doing, man. You going for a run?"

I looked at the guy and glared. "What do you think I am, a fitness nut?" I asked him with a hint of sarcasm. "Do these bruises look like I want to go running in 40 degree weather?"

The marine shrugged his shoulders and smiled at me. "I don't know, I just saw you putting on your boots and guessed you were going running."

"No. I'm going to find the Sergeant. I need to talk to him about something important." With that I left the building and walked towards the other barracks building.

* * *

**Hey guys, I'm back. I'm sorry that Chapter 7 took so long but I had a really long case of Writer's Block. **

**But hey here it is, the long overdue update to Halo: A Long Time Coming. Please Like and review for me. I would love any feedback you have for me. And remember if you want a custom OC for you, be sure to favorite and review. Also be sure to leave me a couple of things that you want me to work into your OC's personality.**

**As always, thank you.**

**_See You Starside,_**

**_-Soul's Release_**


	8. They Call It Halo

**June 13, 2545 (1300 Hours) Military Reservation 01478-B, Highland Mountains, Eposz, Planet Reach**

As I crossed the muddy field between the two barracks buildings, I began to hope that my CO wouldn't call me crazy and have me discharged. As much as I was proud that I had been able to join the UNSC, I was still worried that I wouldn't be believed. I knocked on the metal door to the building, and once I heard my Sergeant walking towards the door, I stood at attention. My Sergeant opened the door and I noticed he had a cigar in the crook of his mouth.

"Can I help you, marine?"

I saluted as he addressed me, after all I didn't want to piss off the Sergeant. "Sergeant Miller, sir, I wish to speak with you in private about something I believe is of the utmost importance."

Sergeant Miller saluted back and stared at me for a minute. Then he stepped back and allowed me to enter the building. "Thank you, sir."

He gestured towards a set of chairs with leather upholstery. "Have a seat, Private- umm." He paused.

"Coder, sir. Private Coder. Thank you," I said as I took a seat in one of the chairs.

"Ah, right. Private Coder. Can I get you something to drink? Water, or a soda maybe?" Miller asked as he walked over to a refrigerator and opened the door.

"I'll take a water, thank you, Sergeant."

Sergeant Miller plucked a water bottle from the refrigerator as well as a bottle of what looked like whiskey from atop the counter nearby. He unscrewed the lid and took a rather large drink from the alcohol. He then walked back towards me and handed me the bottle of water. As I grasped the bottle, Sergeant Miller took a seat in another one of the leather chairs, leaned back and placed the bottle on a small table next to him.

"Now, what was it that you needed to speak to me about, private?" He asked me as he let out a long breath.

I sat forward and put on the most serious face that I could muster. I had to, if I didn't, there was no way that he would take me seriously. "Sir, what I'm about to tell you, is probably one of the strangest things you will ever hear, but it's true." I sighed, as the sergeant shifted in his seat. "There is a program, created by the Office of Naval Intelligence and a scientist, Dr. Catherine Elizabeth Halsey; the program is called SPARTAN-II. It's a highly classified military secret that only a select few high ranking officials know about. I can't tell you about it, but I need to get in touch with Dr. Halsey as soon as I can. I have highly valuable information that she needs to know. It's about the Covenant." I stopped speaking and sat back so that Sergeant Miller could digest what I had just told him.

Sergeant Miller leaned forward in his seat and stared at me as he thought. A solid two minutes passed before he made any sort of noise, which honestly kind of worried me.

"Even if what you're saying is true, how do you know about any of it? And why do you need to talk to Dr. Halsey, for that matter?" he raised an eyebrow as he asked the two questions.

I immediately came up with an excuse. "I am the relative of another marine who was killed during the glassing of Kholo. He told me things about the Covenant that I guarantee Dr. Halsey will want to know."

Miller got up from his chair, walked over to a table and picked up a datapad. "Alright, I'll have a Warthog come and pick you up to take you to see her tomorrow morning." He typed a few commands into the datapad and then placed it back onto the table. He then turned around and looked at me. "Is there anything else I can do for you, Private?"

I stood up and shook my head. "No, sir. Thank you for your time." I stood straight and snapped a crisp salute at him, to which he returned the gesture. I dropped my arm to my side and marched out of the building.

That had gone well, almost too well, in fact. I was relieved and anxious. Was my plan going to work? Only time would tell, and it was a lot of time.

* * *

**June 14, 2545 (1030 Hours) ONI Office Complex, Exact Location Unknown, Planet Reach**

As I rode in the passenger seat of the Warthog, I saw many buildings, most of which had no lettering. I didn't ask any questions about where we were going, I knew it was pointless; the only thing I would get as an answer was more than likely going to be silence.

Eventually, after what was about two hours of driving, we arrived at a three story black building. I waited for the MP to turn off the engine until I climbed out of the vehicle. About twenty feet to my right was a security booth; I walked over and handed the guard my ID, and waited while he stepped in the booth. While he was gone I turned to look at the large building. I couldn't see any lights inside, or any distinct windows for that matter. It had to be an ONI building of some sort, but I had no idea what kind.

"Follow me, marine," I heard a voice behind me say.

I turned and saw that the guard had returned and opened the gate. I took my ID card and put it in the pocket of my fatigues as I followed the woman into the courtyard. I heard the large gate close behind me as I walked; and I noticed the symbol for the Office of Naval Intelligence carved into the black metal the made up the two double doors to the entrance. I continued to watch as my escort stopped in front of a security checkpoint as she had her hand, eyes, and voice analyzed. Once she was done a wall that looked like a mirror opened up and an elevator opened up behind it. We stepped inside and the MP pressed a series of buttons on the wall as the doors slid closed. She stepped away from the buttons and I felt the elevator car descend for what seemed like forever.

* * *

"Dr. Halsey, I have finished with the latest tests you asked for. All results indicate that the procedure is possible. The Flash Clone procedure can potentially yield the precise conditions for construction of an AI. But even then it will take some time. Are you sure-"

"Deja, spare me the details and concerns, all I need to need to know is will it work?"

The AI stared at her creator. Dr. Catherine Elizabeth Halsey was wearing her usual white lab coat and a pair of thin black glasses sat atop her head. Her black hair was sitting at shoulder length, and was staring at the data Deja had sent to her data pad. "Yes, Doctor, the procedure will work.

"Good. After all, we need a way to win the war. How long will it take?"

Before Deja could respond, Dr. Halsey's datapad began making a rapid beeping noise. "Oh what is it now?" she sighed with frustration.

"It seems as if someone is coming towards your office, Doctor. Shall I let them in?" Deja asked softly.

Halsey pinched the bridge of her nose and closed her eyes, how was she supposed to accomplish anything if her lab was so accessible. "Fine, go ahead Deja. Let whoever it is."

* * *

As I walked through the brightly lit hallways I felt kind of creeped out. There was nobody in the halls and no noises besides my footsteps. As I got closer to another black door I could start to see white lettering displayed on its surface.

_Dr. Catherine E. Halsey_

I stopped in front of the door and was about to knock when I heard a woman's voice speak.

_"Welcome, Private. Please come in, we are expecting you."_

I stopped and looked around, trying to find where the voice had come from. I saw a security camera high above me on the left wall, it was pointed directly at me.

That's not creepy at all...

I looked back at the door and began to reach for the handle.

"Nothing ventured, nothing gained," I whispered to myself.

I opened the door slowly and stepped in the room, and I was greeted by the face of a Greek goddess. She stood as tall as me and was wrapped in holographic toga, and in her hand was a clay

"Hello, Private. My name is Deja. May I ask what you are doing here?"

I hesitated but I knew now was the time to come clean. "I need to speak with Dr. Halsey, it's very important. I have information that could help win the war."

Deja looked at me puzzled and was about to say something when I heard another voice call to me from behind her.

"It's alright, Deja. Let the young man through, it must be important if he's here."

"Yes, Dr. Halsey," Deja said as she stepped out of the way.

I walked into the room and saw her. Dr. Catherine Halsey. She sat in a black desk chair and was looking at me as I took each step. I stood in front of her desk and swallowed the lump that had formed in my throat.

"What is it you need to tell me, marine?"

I hesitated, took a deep breath and looked her straight in her blue eyes. Then I exhaled.

"Dr. Halsey, I need to tell you about Halo."

* * *

**Alright, here it is. Chapter 8 is finished. I was 2 days late but I was trying to get some good stuff in here before the next chapter.**

**So what do you guys think? Was it good? Was it bad? Please let me know! Be sure to leave your reviews; those are what inspire me to keep doing this. I love the feedback.**

**Also I want to thank the following people for leaving a review on chapter 7:**

**Fire W0lf **

**AirHawk19 **

**ShiftFrame **

**Sabere Commander**

**headreviewer mk2 **

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**Thank you guys for your support and I hope to have Chapter 9 up soon.**

**As Always,**

** I'll see you Starside**

**SR**


	9. Making Promises

**June 14, 2545 (1330) ONI Office Complex, Dr. Halsey's Office, Planet Reach**

As I sat in a chair across from Dr. Halsey I finished explaining everything that I knew about Halo, the Ark, the Forerunners, The Flood, and what the Covenant were after. It had taken me a long time to explain it all, but Dr. Halsey was smart, so I was sure she could understand it all.

"And that is why the Covenant are glassing Human colonies. They are looking for Forerunner artifacts that can help them find a Halo, or even worse the Ark," I finally finished. I sat back but still sat straight in the chair. Halsey was quiet for a few moments but her face never changed its expression. She kept the same face of intrigue that she had worn the entire time I had spoke.

"So, this, 'Halo,' thing is used as a weapon to kill every living thing in the galaxy? Just to make sure that, a parasitic life-form known as, 'The Flood' starves to death? Is that correct?" She asked me a few minutes later.

I nodded. "Yes ma'am. That's correct. There's no alternative to stopping The Flood. The Forerunners tried all kinds of things to stop The Flood, but the only thing that worked was the Halo array. Luckily, the Forerunners had a plan to preserve the life in the galaxy by taking samples of all life and keeping it safe on secret locations. The samples were then released on their respective home-worlds after they had fired the array," I explained.

Halsey stood up from her desk and walked over to a picture of one of the many SPARTANS the lined the walls. She stopped in front of one that had the number 117 emblazoned on his chestplate. "If what you are saying is true, then we need to stop the Covenant. If they find Halo, humanity is doomed." She sighed and looked down at the floor.

I got up from the chair and looked at her and then Deja, who had been listening the entire time. I looked back at Dr. Halsey who was now facing me. "I need you to do me a favor, marine. I promise to keep this information from ONI, but you need to do something for me in return."

"Anything ma'am," I responded without hesitation.

"Keep John, and the other SPARTANS safe. Make sure they make it through this. Can you do that for me?"

I was stunned. She had asked me to protect the 'protectors of Earth and all her colonies.' I smiled at the thought and replied. "I promise, I will do everything in my power to keep them alive, Dr. Halsey."

She frowned slightly at what I said. "Don't make a promise, if you know you can't keep it."

I nodded and sighed. "But Doctor, how am I supposed to protect them? I am just a marine, I don't have the speed, reflexes, or armor that the SPARTANS have, I'll barely be able to protect myself."

She walked over to her desk and pulled up a hologram of a schematic of a type of MJOLNIR armor, and I immediately recognized it. It was a holographic representation of MJOLNIR MK VI armor. Dr. Halsey began typing in a few commands and the hologram exploded into a display of different parts.

"This is MJOLNIR MK VI power armor. It is faster, stronger and more durable than any previous model, and _you_ will be its' user."

"How?" I asked with concern. "I don't have the ability to even use MJOLNIR MK IV armor, let alone MK VI."

She smiled, and grinned, which made me nervous. "Easy, we're going to make you a SPARTAN."

* * *

**Okay, here's chapter 9 guys. Again it was a little while longer to write than I wanted it to take, but I hope this was a good way to continue from that HUGE cliffhanger I left in chapter 8.**

**So anyways, I know that you're probably wondering how my character will handle the augmentation process; and honestly I'm not sure how to handle that quite yet. But I know it will involve some serious development. So yeah...**

**Oh, and to those who have requested OC's, I plan to introduce them soon. Also, I want to thank the following people for leaving a review on chapter 8:**

_DDAN1157_

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**Thank you guys for the support and feedback. It helps me learn and develop as an author. Please feel free to leave a review on this chapter as well, and go ahead and let me know if you have an idea for the story, or if you have a concern, go ahead and let me know.**

**As Always,**

**I'll see you Starside.**

**SR**


	10. The Birth Of A Spartan

**Author's Note: **As of this chapter, I will be trying something new; I will be exploring the concept of multiple POV's. It is something I am doing in my other Fanfics, so I decided to give it a shot here.

* * *

**-Aren's POV-**

* * *

**June 22, 2545 (0400) SPARTAN-II Training Complex, Planet Reach**

It had been a little over a week since I had spoken to Dr. Halsey and in that time I had already been 'Discharged from the Marines.' Well that is what my file had been marked as for my service in the Marines; in reality Dr. Halsey had me transferred to the SPARTAN project. I wasn't going to be a SPARTAN-II or a SPARTAN-III, though. I was going to be 'something of an experiment,' as Halsey had put it. Today I was going to meet a few of my new instructors who would train me to be one of the most lethal killing machines in history.

I was walking down a stone hallway of the training complex reading a holopad, the only thing I had were a few novels and a couple of digital magazines on it, but they were enough to keep me from being bored during the long walk to the Physical Training room. As I got within about 20 feet of the door, a message popped on the display of my pad. It was a message from Deja. It said that the final preparations for my armor's systems were wrapping up, and that I was to report to the medical lab after PT.

_Getting anxious, Dr. Halsey?_

I opened the large metal door and immediately saw a large assortment of men and women using different weight machines and treadmills. They were all huge and most were wearing a grey tank-top and a matching pair of grey sweatpants. As I entered the room, one of them stopped what they were doing and looked directly at me. I stopped moving as he got up and started walking towards me, his heavy footfalls echoing through the room. I watched uncomfortably as he got closer and started speaking to me.

"May I ask what you're doing here, young man?"

I quickly snapped a salute as I replied. "Sir, I was told to report here for PT today, Sir!"

The large man returned the salute and nodded at me. He looked at me puzzled. "Okay, but this room is for Spartans only, I will need your name and rank, soldier."

"Sir, I am Corporal Aren, Spartan number 139. I am a newer addition. Dr. Halsey picked me to join the SPARTAN program."

"Oh, nice to meet you, Spartan. I am Master Chief Petty Officer John-117. Leader of the Spartans. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Likewise, sir."

"May I ask, what are you doing down here, you don't look like you are fit to be working out in this area."

I handed the chief my datapad. "I was told to report here and introduce myself to the members of Blue Team."

He took the pad and examined it. He took a few minutes to scroll through the contents of the files I had opened for him to look at. "Odd. It says in this file, that your joining my team..."

"Yes, sir." I said in agreement.

John took a few more minutes to read everything and then handed me my datapad back. "Alright then, Corporal. Follow me and I'll introduce you to the team."

I nodded as he turned and began walking back towards the others. "Spartans! Listen up."

The others stopped what they were doing and looked at the Chief. Then they quickly got off of their workout machines and slowly walked over towards us, eyeballing me the entire time. One of them, a thinner woman with dark brown hair smiled as she looked at me. "Who's this, Chief?"

John looked over to me then back at the woman. "This is..." he let out a deep breath. "Corporal Aren. Dr. Halsey has assigned him to join the Spartans." He looked back at me. "Go ahead and introduce yourself," he said as he made a gesture for me to step forward.

I swallowed a lump that had formed in my throat and took a few steps forward. "H-hello there. Like the Chief said, my name is Aren. Dr. Halsey has pulled a few strings and has made it so that I will be joining you as a Spartan." I stopped and took a deep breath, hoping to calm my nerves. "I know that this is strange, considering most of you have been Spartans for most of your lives, but I can guarantee you that I will be a good addition to your ranks."

They all looked at me for a few moments until another one of them who had black hair and was an average build spoke. "Well, I sure hope Halsey knows what she's doing..." He said as he turned and returned to his workout.

Everyone stared at him but then the other two, both of them women turned back to me and the Chief.

"Don't mind him, he doesn't trust many people that aren't Spartans. Name's Kelly, Nice to meet you, Aren," said the first woman.

The other chuckled at what Kelly had said and smiled slightly. "Yeah, Fred's got trust issues. I'm Linda, don't worry, we'll take good care of you, kiddo."

I nodded to the Spartans and turned towards the Chief again. "I'd love to stay and chat, but I have more things I need to get done today, sir. Permission to take my leave?" I said as I saluted John.

The Master Chief turned to face me and returned the salute. "Go ahead, I'm sure we'll have plenty of time to talk later."

I nodded and made my way out of the room. As I entered an elevator, I looked at my datapad and checked to see where the medical lab was. I hit one of the buttons on the wall and the doors closed as the elevator started moving.

* * *

**-Master Chief's POV-**

* * *

As I watched the boy leave the workout room, I couldn't help but feel like he was neglecting to tell me a lot of things. He seemed... odd, to say the least. I trusted Dr. Halsey with my life, almost as much as I trusted my fellow Spartans, but I felt like perhaps Dr. Halsey was making a mistake. The boy seemed so young, but then again, so were we, when we were brought into the Spartan Program. I just hoped that she knew what she was doing.

"So, what do you make of him, John?"

I turned to see Kelly still standing where she had been when Aren was in the room. Everyone else had returned to their workouts but her.

I shook my head slowly. "I don't know. He definitely seems, interesting. Why, something up?" I said to her quietly.

Kelly crossed her arms and looked back towards the door. "I'm not sure. I do certainly have some mixed feelings about him, that's for sure."

"Yeah, me too," I sighed and began walking back towards the workout equipment. "Come on, let's finish up, we have more to do."

* * *

**-Aren's POV-**

* * *

**June 22, 2545 (0625) SPARTAN-II Training Complex, Planet Reach, Med Lab**

"Are you sure about this, Dr. Halsey? The boy hasn't undergone any of the training he needs for this. There is a high probability that he won't survive the procedure."

Dr. Halsey looked at Deja. They had been finishing up the preparations for my augmentation process for the last few minutes when Deja decided to grace us all with that wonderful piece of information.

"Yes, Deja, I know. But, the boy is set on doing this." Dr. Halsey turned away from the computer she had been working at and looked at me. I was laying on a gurney with multiple markings on my body. I was wearing only a pair of what I thought were compression shorts, and a few gauze wrappings that littered my body. I had an IV drip going of some very heavy anesthetics. I was fighting it as best as I could so I could hear what the two were talking about.

"Hey... Deja... next time you feel... inclined to share that type of information..." I paused and closed my eyes for a minute before I opened them and resumed speaking. "Do us all a favor... don't."

"Are you ready, Aren?" Dr. Halsey asked me as she stood next to me.

I nodded and smiled as best I could. "Yeah, but Dr. Halsey?"

"What is it?" she asked as she fiddled with a few of the machines next to me.

"My name's not Aren... it's Schyler..." I said sleepily.

Dr. Halsey quickly looked at me in surprise. "Oh, well. Why are you telling me this, now?"

"Because... if I don't make it..."

She placed a hand on my shoulder and stared at me. "You'll make it. I have a feeling you're lucky; you're like John that way." She raised her other hand and pushed a button on one of the consoles next to her. The many machines that surrounded me began moving slowly towards me.

I closed my eyes as I felt the anesthetics increase in strength. "We make... our own... luck..."

* * *

**Author's Note: **Here's the latest chapter for you guys! I know this took me forever to post, but I've been having a lot to deal with at home. With my mother being sick, and the holidays, it has been hard to get back to this. I know some people will be like, "But you took time to make **2** new stories!" Yeah, I know... I was doing that because I recently got into anime, specifically RWBY. It's made by Rooster Teeth, the same folks who make Red vs. Blue, and it is **AWESOME!**

Anyways I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and I especially hope you like how I introduced Blue Team. I know that I made it look like Fred was an asshole, but I was playing Halo 5 Guardians recently and I made sure to pay special attention to how the members of Blue Team interacted with each other and other people. So I hope I did an okay job portraying their personalities.

So, please, go ahead and leave me a review and let me know what you think.

Also, I want to say thank you to the following people for leaving a review, following, and those who favorited the story since last chapter:

**sparkhead**

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**xX DevilZ Angel**

Thank you all for your support! It's your guys' support that keeps me going. Also, if you haven't already, please check out my other works: **The Ranger And The Rose: A RWBY Story **AND **The Red Reaper.** Again thank you guys so much and stay awesome.

**As Always,**

**I'll See You Starside,**

**Soul's Release**


	11. A Spartan Rises

**July 1, 2545 (1330 Hours) Spartan-II Training Complex, Planet Reach**

**-Master Chief's POV-**

* * *

"Master Chief Petty Officer Spartan-117, report to Dr. Halsey's office, immediately. Repeat, Spartan-117, report to Dr. Halsey's office, immediately."

I looked up from my MA5B that I had been cleaning and sighed. I had been busy with weapon maintenance for the last hour, when the call came over the loudspeaker. I got up from my bunk and quickly put my rifle back together, being careful to make sure all of its parts were back in place, then I placed it on top of my bed. I turned and grabbed my helmet. As I made my way out of the barracks and across the field to Halsey's office, I couldn't help but wonder where the new guy was. Spartan-139, or _Corporal Aren, _as he was named, hadn't been seen by any of the other Spartans in a little over a week. Honestly, I was worried about the kid. I hoped he hadn't been snatched up by the Office of Naval Intelligence, as I knew all too well how they could be when it came to keeping things quiet; and that boy seemed like someone that would raise a red flag in their books.

I eventually made it to Dr. Halsey's office and knocked on the door. I knew that she liked her privacy, so I waited for a response before entering.

"Come in, John!"

I opened the door and noticed that Dr. Halsey and Deja were both reading some data that was displayed on a computer screen. They both looked... disturbed.

"You wanted to see me, Doctor?" I said tentatively, as I stood at attention.

"Yes, come here for a moment, I have something to show you. And please, go ahead and relax. You know how I don't like it when you treat me as a superior officer..." She said as she waved me over to stand in front of her desk.

I made my way over and Deja smiled at me as I looked at the many partial cups of coffee that littered the office.

"I'm sure you're probably wondering why I called you here, aren't you?" she asked as she continued looking at the data in front of her.

"I guess so, yes."

Dr. Halsey looked up from the files and handed me a datapad after she opened the same file on it. "Take a look at this."

I accepted the pad and glanced at the many pieces of information on it. There were dozens of charts, graphs and small paragraphs of data. They mostly described some sort of medical observations, most of which seemed like gibberish, until I came across a portion talking about 'Augmentation Results.' The results described how someone had barely survived the procedure, but then they had made a miraculous recovery.

"Dr. Halsey... Is this talking about what I think it is?" I asked as I finished reading.

Dr. Halsey took the datapad back and then opened up a video surveillance feed on her computer. "Yes. That file was exactly what you think it was."

I looked at the video feed. The boy was laying in a hospital bed, asleep. But he was bigger, much bigger, in fact. His muscles had gotten three times bigger and he looked a lot more durable. He had scars all over what skin was exposed, but they were extremely faded. There was a vitals machine hooked up to his chest, but he was stable. His heart rate was fine, as was his breathing. Overall, he looked very healthy.

"What- How is he?" I asked, still looking at the video.

"Overall, he is fine... He had a small issue during the augmentation process where his body almost rejected several of the chemicals, but then his body accepted it like nothing had happened. His body... it's surprisingly stronger than I expected it would be..." She trailed off as she looked at the video.

"What do you mean? How is he stronger that what you expected?"

"John..." Halsey turned to face me. "His bones are stronger than yours."

"What? How is that possible?"

She shook her head and looked at Deja. "According to Deja's projections, his muscles and bones are significantly stronger than that of any other Spartan, including you. I'm still trying to figure out how it's possible. But I thought that you should know."

I turned back towards the video and stared for a while before I said anything else.

"When will he wake up?"

"That... is up to you. I've kept him in a medically induced coma for the last two days. I wanted you to be there when he woke up. I'm not sure what would happen if he woke up to anyone else."

I nodded and sighed as I looked at her. "Alright. I'll go see him, then." I started towards the door.

"I'll need to come with you. I'll need to wake him up, after all." Halsey said as she picked up her datapad and made her way to the door.

"Okay, then. I'll stop by the barracks and gather my team, as well. They'll want to be there, too."

"Right. Okay, I'll meet you there."

I left Dr. Halsey's office and made my way back to the barracks.

_Oh boy... This should be interesting... Waking up a newly augmented Spartan who's stronger than even me? What could go wrong..._

* * *

_Children's minds are more easily accepting of indoctrination, their bodies more adaptable to augmentation. The result was the ultimate soldier._

_"Schyler, I need you to learn to take care of yourself. You need to be strong, because your mom and I, we're not going to be here forever to take care of you..."_

**(1415 Hours) Spartan-II Training Complex, Augmentation Recovery Room, Planet Reach**

**-Aren's POV-**

* * *

"Corporal, can you hear me..." a woman's voice said.

I heard another voice, this one a deep male's voice call to me. "...on Spartan, wake up..."

"Jesus, Doctor, how much of that stuff did you give him..." Another woman's voice said.

"Schyler! Wake up!"

I could tell someone was trying to wake me up, but it was a Saturday, wasn't it? I just wanted to sleep in and let the day pass me by...

"Go away... I'm tired..." I moaned half asleep.

A split-second later I felt an impact on the side of my face. It immediately woke me up and my eyes shot open. I felt my hand reach for what had hit me and I squeezed it, hard.

"Ow, geez, kid. If that's how you react to somebody making sure you're okay, then I'll let you sleep."

I looked at the wrist I had in a death-grip and quickly let go. "S-shit, sorry," I said as I looked around.

I was laying in what felt like a hospital bed and I was surrounded by Dr. Halsey and the members of Blue Team. Fred was rubbing his wrist and glaring at me a few feet away from everyone else.

"Don't worry about it. He'll be fine."

I looked to my left and saw the Master Chief leaning on the wall. He was grinning at Fred, and then he stood up straight and stepped over to the side of the bed I was in.

"Hey, speak for yourself. You're not the one who just about got his wrist snapped in half by the new guy!" Fred shouted back.

The Master Chief ignored him and looked at me. "How are you feeling, Corporal?"

I sat up in the bed as I responded. "O-okay, I'm a little sore, but other than that, I feel okay?"

"Good to hear," the Master Chief looked over to Dr. Halsey who had been busy with disconnecting a few wires from a nearby machine. "You said you were going to explain the situation to him, Doctor?"

"Yes. Fred, Linda, and Kelly, would you please leave us for a moment? I have some things I need to discuss with John and the Corporal, in private."

Linda and Kelly nodded, while Fred continued to glare at me, but they all left the room anyways. Dr. Halsey then removed a few adhesive patches from my chest before she spoke to me again.

"So, for starters, as I'm sure you probably already have noticed, your reaction time has been increased to approximately 15 milliseconds, which is very impressive. You'll also find that your eyesight has been improved, making it so you can see almost perfectly in pitch black areas; your increased muscle mass will allow you to lift up to three times your body weight and due to one of the augmentations, your bone density has been significantly increased."

Halsey paused a moment and handed me a grey t-shirt to put on. I accepted it and put it on, then I looked at my body. I was _much_ larger than I had been before the augmentation process. My muscles were larger and covered in faded scars, but overall I looked like a walking powerhouse. I looked back up to Dr. Halsey and the Master Chief, who were both staring at me as well.

"What?" I asked.

"Nothing. It's just, I've never actually seen someone recover from the augmentations before," the Chief said as he crossed his arms.

I nodded laughed at what he said. That was probably true, as far as I knew, none of the Spartans had seen each other for several days after they had undergone the procedure. So seeing me like this was probably a little unnerving, to say the least.

"So... what now?"

"Well, now we have to give your body a few days to get used to the changes. After that, we'll have you test out your armor, which will be ready in about four days or so." Halsey said as she turned off the few machines around my bed.

"Alright then, well let's get out of here. I hate hospitals as it is." I said as I shuddered a bit.

I threw the sheet off of my legs and grinned when I saw my leg muscles, then I swung my legs over the side of the bed and slid off. As I stood up, a huge wave of dizziness hit me like a truck and I fell to the floor. I was able to catch myself by my hands, but I slammed my eyes shut as I felt my muscles scream. I shook my head and swore under my breath, but then felt someone holding my shoulder. I opened my eyes and looked to my left to see John kneeling next to me with his hand on my shoulder.

"Are you alright?" he asked with a face of concern.

"Y-yeah, just a little dizzy. I see what Dr. Halsey meant by giving my body a few days to get used to the changes."

John helped me up and I rested my hand on the bed behind me as he stared at me again.

"She wasn't kidding. You're going to have to train each one of your muscles how to move again."

"I see that, thanks." I said as I tried standing on my own again.

It took me a few tries to get it right, but I eventually was able to walk on my own without falling or stumbling into something. Dr. Halsey and John led me out of the recovery room and watched as I looked back at a series of pictures on a table near the door. They were pre-op photos taken prior to me being augmented. I frowned at one of them, it showed my body before the process and it was next to a picture of what I looked like after the operation.

"Is something wrong?"

I turned and saw Dr. Halsey looking at me concerned. She looked over to the photos I had been looking at and then frowned as well.

"No, nothing. I'm fine," I lied.

Halsey smiled. "Well then, come on, we have a lot of work to do," She said as she walked away.

I took one more glance at the pictures before I left. This was the nail in the coffin. I knew that this was real now, that I wasn't dreaming. I was officially a Spartan. No amount of wishing was going to take it back. This was do or die now, I didn't have the luxury of backing out now, I wasn't about to let Humanity be brought to its knees by the Covenant.

I closed the door to the recovery room and followed Dr. Halsey and the members of Blue Team to one of the fitness areas. As I entered the room, I saw the Master Chief setting up a weight machine.

"Okay, first things first, let's work on training your upper torso muscles," he said as he finished loading a machine with weights.

John led me onto the machine and watched as I struggled for a bit, but then he helped out by giving me tips. After about a half hour he stopped me and let me to another machine that Fred had set up.

* * *

**July 10, 2545 (1230 Hours) Spartan-II Training Complex, Planet Reach**

I spent the next few days working out my muscles and training myself how to use my newly augmented body; it was rough, but compared to the stuff I did the few weeks I was a Marine, this was much harder. Today, however, was the day. Today I would receive my MJOLNIR MK IV armor for the first time. I had rushed through my morning training routine and basically sucked down my food at lunch, but none of the others said anything. John and the others knew I was excited, I had been asking them countless questions about what it was like to wear the armor for days, and now that I was going to finally get mine, they understood why I was acting the way I was.

Dr. Halsey had called me and the members of Blue Team to a small warehouse on the outskirts of the complex soon after lunch, which we all promptly made our way to. Once inside, I immediately noticed a few scientist-looking people in the center of the room. They were all huddled around a series of irregular shaped crates, and were talking amongst themselves quietly. Dr. Halsey led me over to them and cleared her throat, to which they all jumped at the sudden loud noise, in the otherwise silent building.

"Gentlemen, is it ready?" She asked as she held a datapad in her hands.

One of the scientists turned and nodded. "Yes, Dr. Halsey, the armor is ready." The scientist looked at me for a moment before he continued. "Is this him?"

Halsey looked at me and nodded. "Yes, this is him. Alright Corporal, listen to what these men have to say and you'll be in your armor in no time at all."

"Yes ma'am!" I said as I saluted Halsey.

"Follow me, Spartan, and we'll get you into your armor," the scientist said.

* * *

About an hour later, after fighting the many tools that were supposed to make putting the armor on easier, I was finished. I waited as one of the scientists initialized the power supply for the armor, and watched as the visor polarized from within. A few beeping noises sounded off as the many systems turned on, first the motion tracker, next the bio-monitor systems, and finally the compass. Then I felt a slight popping sensation in my ears as the suit was pressurized.

"Can you hear me Corporal?"

I turned my head and saw John standing a few feet away with the others. I nodded and then looked down at myself trying to get a better look of the armor.

"Good to hear. How does it feel?"

"Like a second skin, sir." I said as I smiled under my helmet.

I felt a few tools get disconnected from my armor and then a message appeared on my visor.

"SYSTEM ONLINE/ READY FOR USAGE/... ERROR/ PLEASE CALIBRATE SENSORS..."

_Wow... I thought that was just a stupid gimmick in the games..._

"Um, the suit says something about calibrating the sensors. What do I do?" I asked as I looked over to Dr. Halsey.

"Ah, right. Just a moment," she said as she typed a few commands into her datapad. A few seconds passed as the message continued to flash, then it disappeared. "How about now?"

"It's gone now."

"Good," She whispered something into the ear of one of the scientists and they walked away with a laptop. A few minutes went by, during which I took the time to get used to my armor, and then a series of obstacles emerged from the floor and ceiling. There were a few 30mm chain gun emplacements scattered along the course as well, but overall it looked like a piece of cake. The Master Chief started walking towards the far end and leaned against a wall.

"Okay, Spartan, I want you to traverse the obstacle course ahead of you, using whatever route you want. The Master Chief will be waiting for you on the other side. Please, exercise caution, those chain gun turrets, while having their rate of fire severely reduced, are still more than capable of injuring you," Halsey said as she brought me a small crate with and M6D and two magazines of ammunition.

I accepted the weapon and loaded one of the magazines into the handle. A click resonated from the small device and then I pulled back the slide and let it slingshot forward as the first round was chambered. I put the firearm into my hand and watched as a aiming reticle appeared in the middle of my HUD.

"Understood, ma'am," I said as I put the second magazine in a small pouch on my hip. I made my way over to the start of the course and waited for permission to begin.

"3..."

I got into a running position and place my hand on the ground.

"2..."

_You've got this... You can do this..._

"1..."

I smiled as I remembered something I had heard years ago.

_"No matter what happens, you never give up, you hear me? Stay strong and keep moving forward..."_

"Begin!"

As Halsey finished I dashed into the obstacle course. I ran for a few meters until I came to a ledge that was _way_ higher than I could jump. I looked around and noticed a bend in the walls next to me, I grinned as I ran over to the corner and spring-boarded off one of the walls and grabbed onto the ledge. As I pulled myself up, I could hear the distinct sound of one of the chainguns spinning up. Before I rose to my feet, I was under siege by a storm of bullets. I rolled to the left and onto my back as I sighted up on the power cord of the gun and fired. The bullet erupted from the gun, with barely any recoil, and severed the cables, permanently shutting off the gun. I rose to my feet and brushed off my armor as I noticed a trench below a series of metal platforms that were suspended by thin steel cables.

_Somehow I get the feeling that those cables aren't designed to hold my weight for very long..._

I surveyed the many different platforms for a few seconds before I came up with the optimal pathway. I ran over to the edge and hopped onto the second-nearest platform; the cables groaned under the intense strain, but I jumped off before they could snap. As I reached the halfway point in the trench, I passed another wall, and heard another chaingun lock onto my heat signature. But before I could react, it opened fire and hit the platform I was on. Two of the cables snapped and the platform swung out from underneath me. I managed to grab onto the edge before I could fall, but cursed as I dropped my magnum.

_You have got to be kidding me..._

I attempted to shield myself from the incoming bullets with the platform I hung off of, and struggled to look around to see how far I was from the end of the trench. It looked like I was about 5 feet or so from the edge, although I knew if I jumped that the turret would get a perfect opportunity to get a few shots in. I looked up as I saw one of the cables start to cry in stress from my weight and then I got an idea. I let go of the platform with my left hand and yanked on one of the cables, sending the platform swinging above the trench. I grunted as I struggled to hang on, but then pulled myself up and began rocking my body back and forth, hoping that I could gain enough momentum to pull off my plan.

As the platform began to become dented from the gunfire, I swung myself across the remaining portion of the trench as I held onto to the edge of the platform. The remaining cable snapped and the platform came with me as I landed on the edge of the trench. I quickly pulled myself up as I shielded myself from the turret's fire and then turned and stared at it a moment.

_Would you stop shooting at me already? Please?_

I raised my makeshift shield above my head and then quickly threw it at the turret. A loud scrape was heard as the top of the turret was sent flying into the trench behind me. I sighed as I turned and made my way towards the end of the course. As I emerged from the course, I saw the Master Chief cleaning an MA5B. As I walked towards him, he looked up and his face changed to one of surprise.

"Holy- Are you alright?" he asked as he dropped his weapon and ran over to me.

I bent over and placed my hands on my knees as I took a moment to catch my breath.

"Dr. Halsey, he's done!" John yelled as he helped me get my helmet off.

As I felt the air in the room hit my face, I took a deep breath in. "Thanks..."

Dr. Halsey and the others ran over and looked at me in surprise.

"My God. What happened?" Kelly asked.

"I- I don't want to talk about it..." I said as I took a seat in a nearby chair.

"I'll tell you what happened. He just completed the course, _and_ he only fired one bullet out of his weapon." Halsey explained as she looked over the many parts of my armor.

I sighed as I looked at my helmet, which was now laying on the table John had been using. There were several scuff marks on the top and the flashlight on the side was missing a big chunk. Instead, there was a large bullet hole.

"Nice work, kid." Fred said as he slapped me on the back.

I laughed and looked up at him. "I aim to please."

* * *

**HELL YEAH!**

**Aren is now, officially, a Spartan!**

**This was a very fun chapter to write, I really enjoyed writing the obstacle course portion, as well as a few other things. I tried to put in a few humorous moments in, as well as a few _personal_ bits. I thought that they would help convey the message of Aren actually realizing the scale of what he was doing. Oh, and the two italicized lines about staying strong were actual things that I, myself have either heard or been told in my life. I hope you like 'em.**

**As for Aren's armor...**

**At this point in the story...**

**It is a MJOLNIR MK IV system suit with the following parts: **

**Helmet: **Standard MK IV DELTA helmet

**Right SP: **Same as Emile's from REACH

**Left SP: **Standard MK IV DELTA

**Torso: **Same as John's From Forward Unto Dawn

**Utility: **Tactical/Soft Case (For reasons that will eventually be explained...)

**Knee-pads: **FJ/PARA

**Visor Color: **Standard Golden-Yellow

**Anyways, thanks for checking out the latest chapter. Once again, if you like this story, please go take a look at my other work.**

The Ranger And The Rose: A RWBY Story

The Red Reaper

**As Always,**

**I'll See You Starside,**

**Soul's Release**


	12. Sigma Octanus IV

**Author's Note:  
**Okay, this chapter is going to take place after a LOOONG timeskip. Since chapter 11, 7 years and 7 days have passed. Aren is now a Petty Officer Third Class, and has helped both Blue Team and Dr. Halsey fight the Covenant. Throughout the last 7 years, Aren has used his vast knowledge of events of the Halo series to help the Spartans win their battles, and although a few Spartans have still perished, he has managed to keep his promise to Halsey. He still wears his MJOLNIR MK IV armor set-up from chapter 11 but it was upgraded to use the MJOLNIR MK V Energy Shield system. Aren was given a prototype version of the MK V armor system, but it was integrated into his MK IV armor so that questions weren't raised as to why he was so special. Also, instead of the standard green color, his armor is all black with Blue Team's insignia painted on the left shoulder.

I know that this is a huge jump in the Halo Timeline, but I was going through my books and other Halo stuff and I just couldn't for the life of me, figure out a good event to write about. So with that being said, please enjoy the chapter.

* * *

-**Aren's POV-**

-**1730 Hours,** **July 18th, 2552-**

**-On board UNSC Pelican En Route to UNSC Alpha Headquarters, Sigma Octanus IV, Sigma Octanus System-**

* * *

"139, come here for a second!"

I turned to see John motioning for me to join him. He was hunched over a small table that had been bolted to the inside of the Pelican's troop bay, along with a couple of other Spartans. I sighed and walked over to the group.

"Yes, Chief?" I said as I placed one of my hands on the edge of the table. "What do you need?"

The Master Chief turned and handed me a datapad with some aerial surveillance pictures. Many of the pictures were of large amounts of Covenant forces, but there were also ones of battered or destroyed UNSC bases. "Take a look at the 5th photo. What do you make of it?"

I flipped to the 5th page and saw a large stone building with many pieces of rubble outside. There was a metal, blackened sign on the front, obviously burned by plasma fire, and the sidewalk in front had a few civilian bodies on it. But the strange part was the way the doors were broken. It looked as if someone had driven a Warthog straight through the doors; the door frames were missing and broken glass was strewn all over. As I examined the picture, I noticed several sets of _very_ large footprints.

"Well, that's something I haven't seen yet..." I said as I placed the datapad on the table.

"What is it?"

I turned to look at the Chief and frowned. "Sir, we're going to need a few Jackhammers."

John stared at me a moment and then looked back at the picture. "Why, what is it?"

"Have you ever seen a Hunter, sir?" John shook his head. "I figured as much. Anyways, a Hunter is a species in the Covenant that are as tough as a Spartan, but almost 3 times as large. They're made out of a colony of worms that are placed into a suit of armor that has a large shield on one arm and a huge Fuel Rod Assault Cannon on the other. They're damn near impossible to stop, but if you can get behind them and shoot them with a Jackhammer, they should go down no problem."

John crossed his arms as he looked back at the picture. "Alright, I'll have James grab a couple of launchers, then. You'd better go make sure you're ready to go. We'll be touching down soon."

I nodded and walked back over to my seat near the edge of the bay. I grabbed my helmet and clicked on the IFF tag on the inside, then slipped it on my head. As the helmet's pressure seals kicked in, my Heads Up Display blinked to life. The familiar blue holograms slowly came on one at a time, the last of which was my Energy Shield meter in the upper right-hand corner. It had been about a month since Dr. Halsey had given me my upgrades to my armor, but other than the energy shields, I didn't notice a difference.

I looked to my right and grabbed an M392 Designated Marksman Rifle. After making sure the ammo counter was functional, I slapped a fresh magazine into the reciever and slipped it onto my back. I felt the magnetic strip in my armor kick to life and the gun was in place. I decided to grab an MA5B Assault Rifle as well, and did the same with it, but opted for carrying the weapon. After grabbing a handful of ammo clips for my two guns as well as 4 frag grenades, I felt the dropship starting to decelerate. I turned and saw John standing at the edge with his rifle waiting for the Pelican to come to a halt. As the troop bay door opened we were all greeted by the sight of a handful of marines standing in front of a largely destroyed military outpost. Many of the buildings had been reduced to piles of concrete and glass, while the few remaining buildings were billowing smoke.

The Master Chief stepped out of the Pelican and made his way to one of the marines. He had his rifle slightly raised and aimed at the Chief, but he lowered it as John got closer. The rest of us marched out of the Pelican and spread out to secure the area, tend to wounded, and inspect the base. I, however, stayed near the Chief and found a wall of sandbags to set up a sniper position for my DMR.

"Master Chief, Sir!" The marine snapped to attention and saluted John.

"Corporal, at ease. Get your men together and we'll get to work," John said as he looked around.

The marine stared at the Chief, confusion displayed on his face. "Sir? I've got a lot of wounded here. What work will we be doing, sir?"

John looked back at the marine and cocked his head to the side. "We've come to take Sigma Octanus Four back from the Covenant, Corporal. To do that, we're going to kill every last one of them."

I frowned under my helmet and returned my attention to the horizon.

_Were it so easy..._

* * *

**-1800 Hours, July 18, 2552-**

**-Grid Nineteen By Thirty-Seven, UNSC Alpha HQ, Sigma Octanus IV-**

* * *

We had been at Firebase Bravo for only about 20 minutes, but already the thirteen Spartans that had gotten off of the Pelican were hard at work. One of us was busy guarding the dropship while another three were patrolling the area. Kelly had taken the rest to secure the LZ which left me to watch the horizon for any hostile contact. As I sat and scanned the horizon with my DMR, I could see huge plumes of thick black smoke rising off in the distance, probably from the remains of Alpha base; then there were two smaller smoke columns that were considerably closer, but I wasn't sure as to what they were coming from. John had taken the Corporal inside the perimeter of the base to talk and they had been in there for a few minutes before I saw the marine walking back towards the Pelican with a few wounded marines. I was tempted to help him get his men on board but was stopped when the Master Chief's voice crackled through my helmet's speakers.

"Team leader's, meet me at the LZ in three minutes."

I keyed the acknowledgement switch in my helmet and stood up behind the wall of sandbags. I switched out my DMR for my MA5B that was slung across my back and switched on the safety as I turned to take another look at the horizon. I stopped dead when I thought I saw the giant form of a Hunter. After blinking and shaking my head, I looked back and was made severely nervous when the Hunter was gone. Deciding to worry about it later, I turned and made my way to John.

When I arrived, the Master Chief was walking around looking at the destroyed base. From the way he was moving, I could tell he was bothered by the situation. I stopped a few feet away from him and saluted him, to which he returned and then relaxed. I too, looked around at the many destroyed buildings and broken vehicles and sighed.

"Sir, permission to speak?" I said as I looked back at John.

The Master Chief quickly turned to look at me and nodded. "Granted. What's on your mind, Aren?"

I adjusted my grip on my rifle and sighed. "Are you okay? You seem... upset about something." In all honesty, I had a pretty good idea what was wrong, but I wanted to give him a chance to talk to somebody about it. After all, I knew that he was probably trying to figure out what had caused everything to go wrong here.

"I'll be alright. I just don't understand how the marines that were stationed here weren't prepared for an attack."

"Chief, you and I both know that marines are never prepared for the Covenant. Hell, even us Spartans are barely ever prepared for them. I'd be thankful that any marines survived the attack at all," I said as I looked back towards the Pelican.

"I guess you're right," John sighed as he turned and face the dropship as well.

A few seconds went by, then Linda jogged up to meet us, followed by Joshua shortly after. They both saluted John and reported in with a status update, then the four of us watched as the Chief sent an topographical map of the area to our helmet's displays.

"Okay, let's go over this one more time." He paused as he adjusted the displays to allow a set of bullet points appear with our objectives described next to the map. "Mission goal one: we need to gather intelligence on Covenant troop disposition and defenses at Côte d'Azur. Mission goal two: if there are no civilian survivors, we are authorized to remote detonate a HAVOK tactical nuclear mine and remove the enemy forces. In the meantime, we will minimize our contact with the enemy."

We all nodded as John continued.

"We'll need to avoid these four areas though," four different streams were highlighted in yellow as the Chief spoke. "They're being patrolled by Banshee squadrons, so they're a no go." John also highlighted the area where Firebase Bravo had once been. "And according to the Marines, this area is hot, so we'll also be avoiding it."

"Red Leader, take your squad in along the coast. Stay in the tree line. Green Leader, follow this ridgeline, but keep under cover, too. I will be taking this route." The Master Chief traced a path through a particularly dense section of jungle, that looked like it would be difficult to traverse.

"It's 1830 hours now. The city is thirteen kilometers from here—that should take us no more than forty minutes. We'll probably be forced to slow down to avoid enemy patrols—but we all should be in place no later than 1930 hours."

He zoomed into a city map of Côte d'Azur. "Entry points to the city sewer system are—" He highlighted the display with NAV points. "—here, here, and here. Red Team will recon the wharf areas. Green takes the residential section. I'll take Blue Team downtown." John paused as the map returned to normal and zoomed out. "Any questions on the plan?"

Linda was the only one who said anything. "Sir, our communications capabilities will be limited underground. How are we going to check in with each other while keeping our heads down?"

"According to the Colonial Administration Authority's file on Côte d'Azur, the sewer systems here have steel pipes running along the top of the plastic conduits. Tap into those and use ground-return transceivers to check in. We'll have our own private COM line."

"Understood," Linda responded.

"As soon as we leave, the dropship dusts off and will move here." He indicated a position far to the south of Alpha camp. "If the Pelican doesn't make it . . . our fallback rendezvous point is here." He highlighted another area that was fifty kilometers to the south of the camp "ONI's welcoming committee has stashed our emergency SATCOM link and survival gear there."

None of us said anything after that, we all knew that the survival gear was a moot point if the Covenant glassed the planet, but nobody mentioned it.

The map disappeared from our displays and we all looked around at one another. "Stay sharp, people. And come back in one piece. Dismissed." John was firm in his statement, but I could tell he was sincere by what he said. After all, this plan was a particularly delicate one. Anything could go wrong, and despite my knowledge on the events that would unfold here, I still was nervous. The Hunters would be tough to deal with, and I knew how to take them down, but even then, I felt like something was wrong.

Everyone had dispersed and was getting busy with their assigned tasks when John switched over to Blue Team's frequency.

"Alright, Blue Team, form up on me for orders."

A few minutes later, the members of Blue Team were gathered in a small bunker around a metal table. Kelly, James, Fred, and John were all standing around the table with me and we were going over our part of our plan. Blue-Two, or Kelly, was in charge of the Nuke and medical gear, Blue-Three, Fred, was in charge of our explosives, and Blue-Four, or James, was in charge of carrying our communications equipment. John was going to carry the detonator, as well as a canister of blue smoke that would be used to signal for pickup. And I was going to carry the M41 SSR MAV/AW Rocket Launcher, as well as two cases of rockets for the launcher, which was intended for any Hunters that we could encounter.

"Alright, let's go." John said as finished preparing our weapons.

And with that, we started the long walk to Côte d'Azur.

* * *

**-Aboard Covenant CPV-Class Heavy Destroyer 'Cleansing Prayer'-**

**-Third Person POV-**

"How goes the fight, Commander?"

A lone Elite stood upon the bridge of the Cleansing Prayer, observing the many images that flashed upon the viewscreen in the center of the room. Pictures of large green human soldiers danced across it and recordings were played back as Commander Thuvo 'Vonamee overlooked the many reports from his troops on the planet below. As he was addressed by the noble Prophet of Resilience, he turned and bowed.

"Your Holiness, thank you for coming to see me," Thuvo nodded as the prophet approached him. "I'm afraid I have some rather, unsettling news. Over the last few engagements with the Humans, we have been compiling a rather large list of their capabilities, as ordered by the Prophet of Truth," He paused as an image of a black armored human with a golden face. He looked like a very formidable opponent, and was similar in appearance to other Humans that were known as 'Demons.' The image showed the Human punching a Sangheili warrior's face into a flattened form.

"However, over the course of the last few engagements, our scouts have reported this Human appearing more and more," Thuvo explained. "And to make matters worse, this particular Human almost always is able to predict our deployments and counteract them."

The Prophet of Resilience examined the picture for a moment in silence as he mentally decided how to proceed. If this particular Human was able to predict the actions of the Covenant, then The Great Journey was in jeopardy.

"Very well. I will send a report to the Prophet of Truth immediately. In the meantime, if any of your troops gets the chance to capture this Human, do it. I want to know how it is able to predict our actions, and if possible, use this ability against the Humans."

Thuvo bowed as he was given his orders. "By your command, your Holiness. I will alert my men immediately."

Resilience exited the bridge, leaving Thuvo to go about his task. The Elite looked back up at the screen and clicked his mandible in disgust.

"I will enjoy hunting this one down..."

* * *

**Author's Note:**  
There's Chapter 12 for you guys! I'm terribly sorry for the delay on this chapter, everyone. Over the past few weeks, I've been busy with my birthday, my mom's birthday and then I caught a case of Bronchitis and an ear infection, so yeah... Needless to say, things have been pretty hectic.

So anyways, I hope you liked the chapter. I really had fun writing the portion with the Covenant. In case you didn't know, Thuvo 'Vonamee, the Prophet of Resilience, and the Cleansing Prayer are all my original ideas. I decided to implement this side of the story because a while back, someone left me a review saying that the Covenant should learn about Aren and what he could do, and act upon it. So, that's what this was for. I really hope you guys liked it.

Anyways, I want to thank the following people for favoriting/following the story since the last chapter, and for leaving a review on the last one as well:

**Lizard4523**

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Anyways, thank you guys so much for your support. Every bit of support and feedback helps me as a writer. And to everyone else, please, go ahead and leave me a review, let me know what you think about the story. And if you want to stay up to date on when I post a new chapter on this story, go ahead and follow/favorite this.

And if you like this story, go check out my other works:

**The Red Reaper**

**The Ranger And The Rose: A RWBY Story**

So thank you again, so much for reading.

As Always,

I'll See You Starside,

Soul's Release


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